Credit: The Associated Press

Employees of Arkema Kem One chemical company and employees of other petrochemical sites, burn flares as they block the Arkema plant in Marseille, southern France, Tuesday, May 14 , 2013. Kem One, the maker of vinyl products announced last July it may cuts jobs.

PARIS — France's parliament has passed a package of significant labor reforms Tuesday that the government hopes will help halt rising unemployment and jumpstart the country's stagnant economy.

The bill is one of President Francois Hollande's signature pieces of legislation designed to overhaul the country's notoriously hidebound labor market. It includes measures such as making it easier for workers to change jobs and for companies to fire employees.